Coffee Filter Lampshade & More

 

I have yet to make a lampshade out of coffee filters but it is on my long to-do list!

Sarah over at Northwest Hospitality has directions on how you can make this pretty lamp.

If you really need detailed directions, then Ashely at Little Miss Momma has got you covered.

A couple years ago I did a post on my other blog on 13 uses for coffee filters. I thought it would be fun to share them with you here and add another use--lampshade--to the top of the list.

- Make a lampshade.

- Cover food when cooking in the microwave to prevent splatters.

- Use for lint-free cleaning on windows, mirrors and chrome.

- Place between ceramic dishes and glass bowls when traveling in your RV to eliminate

  clicking in the cupboard.

- Filter wine from a broken cork.

- Prevent cast-iron from rusting by placing a filter in the skillet to absorb moisture.

- Reuse frying oil by straining used oil through a coffee filter lined sieve.

- Line a plant pot to prevent soil from going out the drainage hole.

- Poke a hole in the bottom for your Popsicle and eliminate drips on your shirt.

- Soak up extra oil from fried foods such as bacon and french fries.

- Fill with a scoop of baking soda. Twist closed with a rubber band and tuck into stinky

  shoes or closet to absorb odors.

- Fill with fresh herbs and tie to be used in soups and stews.

- Rest your spoon on one the next time you make a gourmet sauce.

- Use as a disposable snack bowl for popcorn and chips.

- Make coffee! 

Did I miss anything? Leave me a comment.

Turquoise Cabinet

This old cabinet door caught my eye and I just knew it had something special!

The edges and bumps got a good sanding and the entire piece was cleaned top to bottom.

The legs were removed from an old coffee table and painted black before being securely screwed to the bottom. A small piece of crown trim painted black was added to the top.

Decoupage black and white paper enhances the inside.

These cute black and white porcelain knobs finish it off.

I think this would be perfect for extra bathroom, laundry, or nursery storage!

Repurposed Side Table - Lack Hack

I named this post "Lack Hack" because that is exactly what it is. This is an Ikea Lack side table that I've hacked the legs off of to be used as a serving area. One of the best catering or tablescape tricks is to tier your food. It gives it such great dimension, flow and just looks appetizing.

Most of the time when I put out the spread it's much bigger than this, but we had a few friends over for New Year's Eve and I didn't want a big hoop-di-doo.  However, I wanted our snacks to feel festive--it's important to me that my friends feel special. I literally cut the legs in half 45 minutes before they arrived!

Next trip to Ikea, I'm picking up two or three of these in black and cutting them different heights to use on my formal dining room table for the next big party!

Mid-Century Dining Chairs

These chairs are so much fun! I picked them up at one of my favorite thrift shops and knew right away they should be whimsical. I decided to choose the color based off the fabric, so I chose that first.

This project was fairly easy with a little bit of sewing involved. The seat and backs were removed and cleaned. I added a little bit of batting to the seats before stapling on the new fabric. Simple slipcovers were sewn for the backs. After a good sanding and priming, the bases got a nice coat of RustOleum Fern and then everything was put back together.

I really like the old metal hardware on the legs of the chairs and wanted to keep a little bit of it's original flair.

Vintage Doors of New Orleans

I came across these door photos I took walking around New Orleans last year and had to share them with you. They are just beautiful to me. Inspiration is everywhere. These doors have inspired me to want to start taking more architectural pictures right here in my own town!

I've got a camera on my phone, but this year I'm challenging myself to keep one of my smaller cameras with me wherever I go. You never know where the next idea may come from!

Table Setting Burlap & Glass

You know me. I love the rustic and the chic mixed together! Sticking with classic neutrals for a holiday dinner party, I mixed the organic texture of burlap with my formal china. Simple and elegant.

The burlap runner was easy to make. Since my table can extend over 8 feet long, I purchased 3 yards of burlap from the fabric store and then cut it in half length wise. I then cut the selvage off the other side. (The selvage is the narrow border on the edge of fabric to keep it from raveling.)

Grab a piece of strand from one edge of the burlap then pull it all the way out. Repeat until you get the width of fray you like. Mine is about 2 inches. The more bold, the better in my opinion. Do this on both sides and on the ends.

DIY Lamppost

Have you asked "what can I do with my old brass chandelier?" I've been having lots of fun making and selling what I like to call my chandelabra for candles. I just had to try an electric version.

I adore the storybook look of a lamppost and thought one would look quaint on my front porch. Not only does it evoke a sense of wonder as you walk up to my front door, but it looks just as charming from the inside looking out.

Always experimenting, I wired together an old floor lamp and an old brass chandelier then sprayed it black. My husband has already claimed this one for his study!

Gingerbread House

Today was gingerbread house decorating day--a Christmas tradition in our home for over 22 years now. This year four of us decorated one gingerbread house. Originally the two girls in the house--myself and my youngest daughter--were going to share it. But today it turned into a project of four with dad and brother pitching in. We all got one side of the house.

Each side of the house depicts our personalities and our creativity. I found it intriguing as artists we are such perfectionists and our own worst critic. Each side of the house turned out great! But each one of us found something we didn't like in our creation, and something we liked better on another.

Like most things in life, we can use these feelings of inadequacy in one of two ways. We can become competitive and try to out-do the next person or we can appreciate the other person's creation and encourage them.

This made good food for thought. Yes, pun intended. Having been raised in a sports-driven house, it has been ingrained in me to be competitive. To try hard and to be better than others. For me, this transferred into a successful career in sales. But I have to ask myself is it healthy to be competitive as an artist?

As artists, designers, musicians, architects we should believe in our passion and stand by our art form. Should we strive to the best we can? Yes, of course! However, I also think that appreciating another person's talent as an artist should be celebrated and we should encourage each other, not try to be the winner.

Stocking Mantel Topper

As my family grows with children marrying and grand-babies being born, so does my stocking collection! We have simply outgrown my "peace" and snowflake hooks that once sat atop the mantel. This year I had to create something new and with a little planning for future stockings.

I call it a stocking mantel topper. It is basically a custom shelf that fits directly over the top of my mantel and looks like it is the mantel!

Let's back up. This is what my mantel looks like without the stocking mantel topper. So now you can see, it does look a little different and by looking at the first picture you can now see the topper.

The construction was pretty simple and I was able to put it together and get it painted in one afternoon. Here is how it's done.

1 large pine board (I used a 1x12 8 feet long with the length then cut to size)
2 1x3 pine boards for the front and sides
Wood trim (I found mine at an architectural salvage place for $.25 per foot)
Vintage drawer knobs

Basically you are going to construct a three-sided box the size of your mantel. Be sure to glue and nail to hold everything securely into to place then attach the trim.

Measure the spacing for the number of knobs you need and drill your holes before painting. 

Putty any nail holes and joints where two boards meet. Allow to dry, lightly sand, and tack (or wipe off) any dust. Apply a coat of primer, allow to dry, and then apply a coat of paint.

Once everything is dry, install the drawer knobs as the stocking hooks. You'll notice mine are all mismatched. Some of them were salvaged from the architectural store, some were in my basement, and some where new from Hobby Lobby--which I scored with a half off sale!

Tip: Cut the main top board about 1 inch longer than your mantel so it will easily fit on top of your mantel without being too snug.

Repurposed Farmhouse Chairs

Red and white is the theme for Christmas this year in my kitchen and breakfast nook. I had these old chairs in the basement that I decided to spray paint cherry red to go around the kitchen table.

I got the chairs in the '80's when I had a farmhouse style table. They used to be white with pine seats. Then in the '90's I painted them black. In the '00's I got a new table and chairs (thank goodness) and this year they got painted red. Just for fun! Just for Christmas.

DIY Christmas Art

I thought it would be fun to replace my every-day breakfast nook art with some Christmas art. I wanted to do a Christmas carol and chose Silent Night--one of my favorites!

Though the canvas already came white, I went ahead and applied a coat of white latex to smooth out the surface a little before painting my words and make it look as if I didn't just slop it together.

Using Wordle I copied and pasted the lyrics into the create box and hit the "go" button. If you aren't familiar with Wordle, it takes any words you paste into the create box and jumbles them around. You can keep clicking the "randomize" button until you get the design you like. There are a slew of options to choose from such as: removing common English words, more vertical, more horizontal, as well as a large variety of fonts.

Once I got the layout I liked, I printed it black and white so it would be easy to trace and used my Artograph Tracer. Because I used two canvases, I hung them right next to each other during the tracing process and then hung them a few inches apart when I was finished.

After I traced all of the words, I filled them in with the same color red I used in the rest of my breakfast nook. I think it looks awesome!

Cheater Topiary

I just have to share with you how I made my cheater topiary. They are cheater, because they only cost me a few bucks to purchase two dowels. You can't beat that price.

My front porch urns were already filled with boxwood so this was a good jumping off point. I stuck dowels that I spray painted brown right into the dirt. Then I pushed two different sizes of styrofoam balls covered in sheet moss, which I had leftover from a previous aesthetic, straight through the dowels.

Next came the fun part. I went around to the side of my house and trimmed up the boxwood in my landscaping, clipped the branches into smaller pieces, and just stuck them all over into the styrofoam balls. The look was finished off with a strand of twinkle lights!

Grapevine Wreath Chandelier

I think the song lyrics that play "it's the most wonderful time of the year" is because all the creative types can break design rules and go all out decorating our homes for the season!

Remember that 36-inch wreath I picked up on the cheap? I took it from my fall decor and transformed it into a chandelier to help set the scene on my front porch.

I'm always hunting the end-caps at Target. I get a ton of out-of-season stuff for 75% off and this is where I picked up the little strand of cage lights so I already had those in my basement. Everything else I found around the house so this chandelier cost me $2.00 for the light socket adapter that I screwed into my front porch can light. This is the same way I hung the bistro lights in my basement.

The process was pretty simple, but hanging it didn't come without a little creativity. I pulled out the can light fixture half way and attached three wood screws into the frame that I attached the hanging chain. Because the lip of the can fans out over the opening, I wasn't able to push the fixture all the way back into the opening. This left an ugly gap so I used a few smaller pieces of the greenery and stuck them in the empty space. I think adds to the whimsical feel I created!

4 Curtain Hanging Tips

Custom drapes are beautiful but come with a hefty price. The options for curtains in the places we shop everyday are endless and affordable! For the DIY decorator and the every-day home owner on a budget these are an easy and inexpensive way to class up a room.

1. Use clips, grommets or rings. Most curtains comes ready-made with a pocket to push the rod through--don't use it. Spend a few extra dollars for the proper hanging hardware. This looks nicer and it is more functional. It is much easier to pull your curtain open and closed when it can easily slide. Plus the top of a bunched up, scrunched up curtain is the perfect place for a bunch of dust to collect.

2. Pinch a Pleat. Take a couple extra minutes when hanging your curtains to pinch a pleat. This gives your curtain some symmetrical movement when they are both pulled closed and opened.

Lay your curtain out flat on the bed, the dining room table, or the floor. Pinch a pleat in the center of the curtain and then on each end. 

Divide the space between the center and the ends by how many rings you are using and pinch a pleat and clip on the ring.

Your curtain will hang with a pretty, symmetrical, fool-proof wave.

3. Flank the sides of the window. You hear it all the time on our favorite HGTV shows, but I just felt it bears repeating. This tip can make an offset window look centered, add luxury, make a window feel bigger and a room appear larger.

4. Hang floor to ceiling. Curtains hanging from floor to ceiling add elegance, sophistication and make the room feel bigger. Can't find the length you need? Check out my article on stretching your curtains and your budget.